MAKE YOUR OWN PILLOW AND TOWEL TIES

You would really have to know me well to know that I almost never say no to any appealing opportunity in life. Whenever I hear about a new business idea my ears still perk up. I am one of these people that does several things well but none with absolute perfection. Being far too restless for perfection, I want to do everything. An average day at home includes the following: I will paint for an hour, write for an hour, clean house, cook something and go back to the painting and then read....I don't have AADD but I have been accused of this.

A friend and I started this business of making towel and pillow ties several years ago. I came up with the idea that these ties would add a very decorative touch to any room. Today with internet sales and so many marketing ideas I may have made a success of this business. I just didn't market the business as well as I should have, as I had a job and many other obligations, plus I got discouraged for several reasons. I gave away most of these ties to friends, but am thinking of making some new ones for my house.

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You can make these ties with almost any fabric. I have used transparent and silky fabrics, cottons, cotton blends, rayon and even denim. The trimming and decorating of these ties is where the creativity shines. You can sew on beads, buttons, feathers braiding, fringe or whatever you desire. Adding these ties to your décor is a clever and inexpensive way to coordinate colors in a room or add new colors and textures. You can even patch different fabrics together to get colorful and very decorative effect. This is a great project to stretch your creativity.

Supplies You Will Need:

• A sewing machine
• Matching thread
• A pair of scissors
• Straight pins
• A measuring tape

Most of the ties should be about two to three feet in length depending on the pillow size as well as the towel size. The ties should be from six to eight inches wide. This depends on your taste as well as the size.

1. Wash your fabric in cold water and dry thoroughly.
2. Press the fabric.
3. Measure and cut out strips twice the width that you want the ties to be.
4. Fold the right sides together and pin the seam.
5. Sew the seam and press it open to get a crisp fold.
6. Fold the tie with the seam in the center so the sides are free from seams.
7. Press the seams once again.

These ties work well on pillows and towels to brighten a room. You can make very small ties for hand towels. Try these ties on your bedroom pillows to decorate the room.

You can use the tie around a vase of silk flowers.

You can lay the tie on a small table as a table runner.

You can wear the tie in your hair, around your neck or as a belt.

The decision is yours on how to pick the best trim for the fabric. Your choices about the type of trim may be influenced by your furniture, colors or which room the ties will be used.

When completing the basic tie, the ends of the tie will be unfinished. When you sew either braiding, fringe or even rickrack you will place the trim at each end of the tie, folding the ends in over the edge of the trim. Pin the trim in place and baste with a needle and thread to ensure it holds in place. After you do a lot of these you will just pin and sew.

You may want to run a row of braiding down the center of the tie for a different look, or add a band of print or stripe fabric over the plain fabric.

If you want a very fancy tie sew beads or fancy buttons around the outside edges of the tie. This will surely decorate the pillow as well as the room.